"Behaviorism" is the term used to describe a philosophy of mind, hundreds of years old, originating in the works of thinkers like Hobbes and Hume.

Behaviorists seek to understand human nature by observing how people act and interact. While cognitive science seeks to understand the mechanics of our brains, the behaviorist tradition sees the mind as a "black box." Behaviorists understand the mind by observing its input and output, rather than by dissecting its contents.

Behaviorists don't deny the existence of minds, thoughts, feelings, and mental states. They simply ignore these things in a particular scientific context - focusing instead on language, action, and outward signs of learning - in the development of working models of human behavior. For example, psychologists and counselors use a behaviorist approach, building a model of the patient's behavior over time, then working with the patient to modify that behavior. The successes of psychotherapy are often attributed to the behaviorist approach.

In this century, Behaviorism has been associated with B.F. Skinner, a controversial intellectual figure whose theory of "Radical Behaviorism" held that humans were almost entirely behaviorist animals - that is, our minds emerge from the influence of our environment. Skinner also held that all language was a form of behavior.